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Divine Liturgy 31 May 2020

Descent of the Holy Spirit: Holy & Glorious Pentecost

Holy and Glorious Pentecost

While public liturgies at our Nanaimo parish have resumed on Saturday mornings, under COVID-19 social distancing measures and stay-at-home advice for at-risk individuals, we will continue to live-stream Sunday Divine Liturgy from Victoria.

Divine Liturgy of our Father among the Saints John Chrysostom, celebrated by Father Yuriy at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Parish, Victoria. 10AM 31 May 2020.

After the initial Amen, all kneel and sing:
Heavenly King, Advocate, Spirit of Truth, * who are everywhere present and fill all things, * Treasury of Blessings, Bestower of Life, * come, and dwell within us; * cleanse us of all that defiles us, * and O Good One, save our souls.

First Antiphon
Verse: The heavens tell the glory of God, and the firmament declares the work of His hand.
Refrain: Through the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour, save, us.

Verse: Day to day pours forth the message and night proclaims this knowledge to night.
Refrain: Through the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour, save, us.

Verse: Their utterance has gone forth into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.
Refrain: Through the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour, save, us.

Third Antiphon
Verse: O Lord, by Your power the king shall rejoice and greatly exult in Your salvation.
Troparion, Tone 8: Blessed are You, O Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen as most wise by sending them the Holy Spirit; through them You caught the entire world. Loving Master, glory to You.

Verse: You gave him his heart’s desire and did not deny the request on his lips.
Troparion, Tone 8: Blessed are You, O Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen as most wise by sending them the Holy Spirit; through them You caught the entire world. Loving Master, glory to You.

Verse: For You have gone before him with gracious blessings, you have placed upon his head a crown of precious stones.
Troparion, Tone 8: Blessed are You, O Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen as most wise by sending them the Holy Spirit; through them You caught the entire world. Loving Master, glory to You.

Entrance Verse: Be exalted, O Lord, in Your strength; we will sing and make music to Your might.
Troparion, Tone 8: Blessed are You, O Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen as most wise by sending them the Holy Spirit; through them You caught the entire world. Loving Master, glory to You.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Now and forever and ever, Amen.

Kontakion, Tone 8: When the Most High came down and confused the tongues,* He parted the nations.* When He divided the tongues of fire,* He called all to unity;* thus with one voice* we glorify the all-Holy Spirit.

Instead of ‘Holy God...’ we sing: All you, who have been baptized into Christ, you have put on Christ! Alleluia! (3x) Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Now and forever and ever, Amen. You have put on Christ! Alleluia! All you, who have been baptized into Christ, you have put on Christ! Alleluia!

Prokeimenon, Tone 8
Their utterance has gone forth into all the earth, * and their words unto the ends of the world.
Verse: The heavens tell the glory of God, * and the firmament declares the work of His hand.

Epistle : Acts 2:1–11
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles: At that time, when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, ‘Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.’

Alleluia, Tone 1
Verse: By the Lord’s words the heavens were established, and by the Breath of His mouth all their host.
Verse: The Lord has looked down from heaven and beheld the whole human race.

Gospel : John 7:37–52; 8:12
On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and exclaimed, ‘Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as scripture says: “Rivers of living water will flow from within him.”’ He said this in reference to the Spirit that those who came to believe in him were to receive. There was, of course, no Spirit yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified. Some in the crowd who heard these words said, ‘This is truly the Prophet.’ Others said, ‘This is the Messiah.’ But others said, ‘The Messiah will not come from Galilee, will he? Does not scripture say that the Messiah will be of David’s family and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?’So a division occurred in the crowd because of him. Some of them even wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, ‘Why did you not bring him?’ The guards answered, ‘Never before has anyone spoken like this one.’ So the Pharisees answered them, ‘Have you also been deceived? Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed.’ Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them, ‘Does our law condemn a person before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?’ They answered and said to him, ‘You are not from Galilee also, are you? Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.’ Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’

Instead of “It is truly...” we sing: O my soul, magnify the one Divinity in three Persons.
Irmos, Tone 4: Rejoice, O Queen, boast of virgins and mothers, for every tongue, though capable and eloquent, cannot hymn you as is your due, and every mind is confounded in seeking to comprehend the way in which you gave birth. Wherefore with one accord we glorify you.

Сommunion Hymn
Your good Spirit will lead me to the land of righteousness. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

[A private prayer of spiritual communion:
My Jesus, I believe that You are present in these Holy Gifts!
I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot receive You now,
I place before You my whole life and hope, O loving Master;
and I ask, pray, and entreat You: Make me worthy to partake in a mystical way
and with a pure conscience of Your awesome and heavenly Mysteries:
for forgiveness of sins, for the pardon of offences, for communion of the Holy Spirit,
for the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven, for confidence before You,
and not for judgment or condemnation.
I embrace You as You enter and abide in me, and I unite myself completely to You.
Permeate my soul and body, and never permit me to be separated from You.
Amen.]

As the month of May is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, every Sunday in May after Divine Liturgy we will celebrating Moleben (prayers of intercession) to the Mother of God [PDF]